¹³ I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. ¹⁴ I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. ¹⁵ So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.

Fruit was always in Paul’s sights—not for himself, but for the benefit of others. The apostle Paul was continually focused on how he could be helping others live fruitful lives for Christ. If he were alive today, he would be the sort of person who, when walking into a room full of people, would enter with a mission to minister to one or all of them. Paul’s visit to Rome was not for sightseeing or vacation, but to minister to the believers there.

The relationship he had with them was so well established that he felt compelled to explain why he had not visited them earlier. His explanation: he had been prevented. We don’t know the specific reason. It may have been the pressing burden for the churches in the Eastern Mediterranean area (2 Cor 11:28), the direct intervention of the Holy Spirit (as was the case on his second mission tour in being prevented from going into Bythinia), or the hindrance of Satan (as was the case regarding a visit to the Thessalonians (1 Thess 2:18). Whatever the reason, we find the truth exemplified that even the best desires of those serving God are sometimes altered by things beyond our control.

His eager desire to preach to them is rooted in his “obligation,” or literally, his owing a debt. Paul never saw himself as a volunteer who decided that serving the Lord was a good career option. He was compelled. “I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel” (1 Cor 9:16). This does not mean Paul served “kicking and screaming” and would have much preferred doing something else with his life. He had been so completely changed by his salvation that he could not envision his ministry as a choice, but an assignment from his Master—an assignment that gave him great joy and purpose in life, namely to live for the One who loved him and gave Himself to die for him.

Paul saw himself like the freed slave of Exodus 21:5-6, who loved his master so much, he willingly continued on as the master’s servant. Paul was keenly aware that he belonged among those whom Christ “purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). And he never tired of preaching the gospel, even to believers in Rome—for it was a constant reminder of God’s love and grace—but more so to non-Jews everywhere, both in the cultured world as well as the uncultured world.

Lord, I too am compelled to serve You out of gratitude for Your love to me. Help me never minimize the importance of the ministry You have assigned to me.